Holey Moonlight
by LoonyLovelyLuna
Summary: Years after the Final Battle, and Luna Lovegood finds herself having to run away from an abusive situation... and right into George Weasley's arms. WARNING! Rape mentioned, adult language and situations, but no graphic description.
1. Chapter 1

Holey Moonlight – Chapter 1

WARNINGS: Mention of abuse/rape. Nothing graphic. Will add other warnings as they come up. There will be adult language and situations, but no graphic descriptions!

She lay curled up on the bed in the muggle hotel room she'd used to run to in her escape. The black eye still-fresh looking, even though it was already two days old. And - other injuries, some new, some from the past. And the scar...

She ran her hand over her face, forcing herself not to think about it. She instead focused on her rescue party.

She knew they'd be there soon. She knew _he_couldn't find her. She'd laced his food with enough sedative to knock out a hippogriff for 24 hours.

She lifted her head a bit as she heard two sets of footsteps on the walkway outside the room. She'd given the night manager a picture so he would know who to give the extra key to.

She jumped a bit as the key slipped home through the tumblers and turned. Then the knob turned and sudden bright light from an overhead streetlight flooded the room, silhouetting two shapes in the doorway.

Then Harry Potter and Ron Weasley stepped through and squinted into the room for a moment before Ron closed the door and tuned on a light.

"Holy shit!" This, from Harry as he stared at the sight on the bed.

She winced internally. When she'd been able to make her escape, she'd been wearing _his_ favorite sundress at _his_ insistence. It showed that there were more injuries than just the bruise on her face, and her hair was unkempt, and she looked tired. She didn't care though; it couldn't be helped.

She looked bad enough that the manager had offered to call a policeman (whatever that was). She assured him that help was on the way.

When she showed him the picture of Harry and Ron, the manager quieted down, nodded and handed her the key.

She shifted a bit, trying to sit up, but her midsection hurt. Badly. She had at least one broken rib and she gasped in pain.

"Luna!" Both wizards cried out as they rushed to her side.

"We'll take you to Hogwarts-"

"NO!" She tried to sit up; she could feel that panicky feeling rising in her chest. "Please, I don't – I _can't_ go to Hogwarts, and I don't want to go to St. Mungos. Isn't there anywhere else?" Her eyes pleaded with them to understand her need without her having to tell them – yet.

Ron nodded almost at once. "We could take you to the Burrow – my family's home," he explained. "My mum knows a fair bit of healing."

She nodded and got slowly to her feet, with much wincing.

"Perfect."

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

Harry decided to side-along Apparate Luna, while Ron went ahead to alert his mother.

By the time Harry had half-carried Luna in, Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, Ron, and, surprisingly, George.

When he saw Harry and Luna enter, George rushed over to help.

_Or maybe not so surprisingly_, Harry chuckled to in his head.

"Oh, Luna, you poor dear," Mrs. Weasley fretted, even as she gathered potions, creams and ointments. "Lay her down on the sofa boys, then get out of the living room." She stated very sternly. "Ginny can help –"

"NO!" Luna tried to sit up again, but Mrs. Weasley held her down gently. "Please, Mrs. Weasley, I'd like it to be just us. Sorry, Ginny."

Ginny shook her head, trying to smile at her friend in reassurance around her worry.

"Aright dear, just lay back," Mrs. Weasley shooed everyone out to the kitchen, then turned back to Luna.

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

Harry, Ginny, Ron and George all sat at the kitchen table, cooling tea at their elbows, talking quietly about what they saw.

"What I want to know is what the _bloody hell_ happened?" George exclaimed suddenly, surprising everyone.

Ran laid a comforting hand on his brother's shoulder. "We don't know, yet, George," he said around a lump in is throat. Luna was one of his dearest friends – sweet, open, giving, loyal, almost as intelligent at Hermione – why anyone would see fit to do this to her was beyond his comprehension.

George growled. "When I find out who did this, I will make them pay out their bloody arses!"

Harry and Ginny shared a look as they sat there, holding hands. They knew that Luna had been able to befriend and comfort George after his twins death like no one – not even his parents – could.

The look they shared wondered if he realized he was in love with Luna yet. Probably not.

Ron was thinking along those same lines as he tried to comfort his brother.

"George, buddy, I know how you're feeling," Ron rasped out through gritted teeth. "But you have to let this be handled through the law," he held up a hand and shook his head when it looked as if George would protest. "No. If you go and get revenge, you're no better than whoever did this."

Ginny looked up from the table, her skin very pale under her freckles, partially voicing the question that was floating through all their minds. "You don't think…?"

George shot up out of his chair, paced the floor for a moment, and then punched the wall.

"I just got done patching up one child tonight. I didn't need another!" Mrs. Weasley bustled in with her bag, walked up to George, and touched her wand to his hand, mending the broken bone. She gave him a steady look, one that quelled him immediately. He sat quietly at the table with his face in his hands.

Mrs. Weasley turned to Harry. "She's asking for Hermione," was all she said. It was all she needed to say. They all knew why Hermione was being asked to talk to a female victim.

"I'M GOING TO KILL HIM!" This, surprisingly enough, came from Ginny. Thankfully Harry was quick enough to grab her and keep her from going anywhere. She struggled for a moment, then buried her face in Harry's shoulder and started sobbing. He gave Ron a significant look. Ron nodded and turned to the fireplace.

Mrs. Weasley watched her children, they were all hers, whether by blood or not, going through one of the hardest trials anyone ever had to face. Betrayal. By a friend. Again.

She laid a hand on George's shoulder and spoke quietly. "She was asking for you. She wants to see you before Hermione arrives."

He was up and out of his seat so fast, he almost knocked it over. He went rushing into the living room.

Mrs. Weasley just shook her head and smiled. "I wonder when they'll realize they're in love?"

Harry and Ginny laughed lightly at that, Ginny wiping her eyes as she lifted her head from Harry's shoulder, explaining they had a similar thought not so long ago.

They were still chatting about it when Ron turned away from the floo.

"'Mione will be here in half an hour."

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

George walked quietly into the living room, not wanting to disturb Luna if she was resting.

She was lying on the sofa, still, with her eyes closed, breathing evenly. The bruise around her eye and down her cheek already fading from the potion and cream his mother used.

He stood there for a moment, just looking at her and thinking how beautiful she was.

He turned to go back in the kitchen, thinking she was asleep, when he heard her shift on the couch.

"Georgie."

He closed his eyes. Only two people in his life ever called him 'Georgie' – the first, his twin, who he'd always thought was the second half of him. The second, the woman who had helped heal his soul and stolen his heart; who _was_ the second half of him, he realized now. He turned around slowly and looked at her.

She lay there, looking up at him, with her bright blue eyes, staring at him like he was the last cup of water on Earth and she was dying of thirst.

She continued to look at him, steadily, raising her arms to him.

He was at her side instantly, carefully taking her in his arms and holding her as she clung to him, sobbing into his shoulder. He held her; making gentle shushing sounds and stroking her hair, letting her cry out her anger and hurt.

After a few moments of crying, she sniffed and raised her head from his shoulder, still clinging desperately to him.

"Georgie, it's been awful. He –he –"

George placed a finger to her lips and shook her head.

"You don't have to tell me right now. You'll be talking about it enough once Hermione is here," pulling her to him again.

She laid her head back on his shoulder, wondering how she'd been able to fight these feelings for so long.

Oh, yes, she'd been in love with George Weasley since her fifth year at Hogwarts. She knew that he and Fred were identical, but even in that, there was something different about George. That was different from anyone else in his family – even Fred.

She'd ended up dating Neville Longbottom after school because everyone seemed to expect it. And even though she and George had become great friends, she'd stayed.

She pulled back from the hug, staring intently into his dark blue eyes.

Then she leaned forward and kissed him.

Her eyes closed, putting a bit more pressure into the kiss, and suddenly, he was crushing her to him, kissing her back as much as she was kissing him.

Then a throat cleared in the doorway and they broke apart, blushing. Looking over at the same time at the person standing in the room with them.

Hermione Weasley smiled slightly, relieved to see one of them had made a move at last.

"George, can you excuse us, please?"

He looked at Luna, then, silently asking for the okay to leave. She nodded once, laying a hand on his cheek.

He nodded to himself, kissed her on the forehead and headed back to the rest of his family.

Hermione turned to Luna with a serious expression, sitting in a chair close to her.

"I know this is going to be tough. We'll take as long was you need," she flicked her wand at a quill and parchment she'd pulled out of her bag and squeezed her friends hand once and sat back. "Please, start when you're ready."

Luna took a deep, steadying breath and began talking.

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

George was floating. She'd kissed him! He felt like dancing or singing.

Harry, Ginny and Mrs. Weasley noticed the dreamy expression as soon as he walked into the room.

"Alright there, George?" Ginny asked, a bit amused. "How's Luna?"

He nodded absently, and then said. "Fine. She kissed me."

It took a moment to realize what he'd said and turned a brilliant shade of red.

Mrs. Weasley smiled at him. "That's nice, dear. Come have a cup of tea."

George heaved a sigh and sat down, accepting the cup of tea from his mother, contemplating exactly what that kiss could mean for he and Luna.

The other three occupants shared an amused look and went back to their tea and conversation.

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

Hermione sat; stunned at everything that Luna had just told her. How could Neville – good, sweet, wouldn't-hurt-a-fly Neville – turn into such a monster?

She got up and went to the Floo, calling out for someone's office at the Ministry. She stuck her head into the green flames for a few moments.

When she pulled her head out, she stood and turned to Luna.

"Kingsley and Proudfoot are on their way to collect him. Do you have somewhere to stay for a few nights?"

Luna sighed. "I hadn't really thought about it. I've still got that muggle hotel I can go to. I paid for the week…"

Hermione shook her head. "No, you need to be with people – not by yourself," she hesitated, and then added. "I'm sure Molly and Arthur would let you stay here. The only one staying with them right now is George."

That did it. The light sparkled in Luna's eyes. "Well, I wouldn't want to impose…"

Again, Hermione shook her head. "You wouldn't be. I'll talk to Molly right now," she headed toward the kitchen, but stopped short. She turned back to her friend. "Did you want to … talk to them? Maybe… explain?"

Luna rubbed hands over her face. She needed to. They deserved to know. She nodded.

"Would you ask them to come in here, please?"

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

Hermione slowly opened the connecting door, knowing what was about to be revealed was going to hurt everyone – maybe not as much as it hurt Luna, but still…

Ron, Harry, Ginny, Molly and Arthur looked up as she walked in. George sat there staring into his cup.

All Hermione could do was stare at them all for a minute.

"Luna would like you all to come in the living room, please," she looked at Molly. "She's also going to need a place to stay for a few nights. Would it be okay if –"

Molly stood up and started heading for the living room. "Of course! Let's go everyone."

They all got up, a chorus of wood scraping on wood to follow the Weasley matriarch out to Luna. George was the last to go in.

When he got in there, he was happy to see that no one had sat next to Luna. She looked at him and patted the seat next to her.

Needless to say, he didn't need a second invitation.

As George sat next to her, he took her hand, lacing their fingers together. Luna smiled at him, squeezing his hand and taking a deep breath.

"I'm sure you all are wondering what has been going on," she started, but Molly interrupted.

"You don't have to tell us, dear," Mrs. Weasley interjected.

Luna nodded. "I know. I want to, though – you need to hear what Neville has done."

Everyone in the room flinched. None of them had ever imagined that they would be in a room listening about the evils of _Neville Longbottom_.

George wrapped his other arm around Luna, while still holding her hand. She looked at him gratefully.

"Well, as you all know, Neville and I have been together for several years – since not long after the Final Battle, as a matter of fact," she sighed. "This has only been going on for about 2 years."

Harry and Ron started swearing under their breath, while Hermione and Ginny actually had their wands out, gripping them tightly. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley patiently waited for Luna to continue.

Luna told them of how it had stated small – they had gotten into an argument one night and Neville slapped her. After apologizing for days and promising it would never happen again, she decided to stay.

The next time had been _months_ later – and quite a bit worse.

"He beat me unconscious," she told them stonily. She then went onto describe how she'd left the next day and had spent 2 weeks at her fathers house before Neville finally convinced her to come back.

"After that it was pretty regular," Luna stated as tears ran unchecked down her cheeks. "He'd beat me until I lost consciousness and then lock me in a little cupboard – barely big enough to lie down in so I couldn't get away."

Then I had gotten really bad. She described how Neville would tie her to the bed and do whatever he wanted – no matter how much she screamed and carried on. Finally, he'd gotten tired of it and would just Petrify her while he used her body.

"Tonight he finally left me out so I could clean and cook – which is when I finally had the opportunity to drug him to get away. I owled Harry and Ron and left for the muggle hotel."

When she was done the entire room was in a shock. _Neville Longbottom_ did these things – was _capable_ of doing those things?

Luna looked down at the floor and sighed. "There's one more thing –" she stood up and turned so the whole room could see her back and she lifted her shirt. What was there made them all gasp.

Carved length-wise down her back was "LOONY" very badly scarred and angry-looking.

She pulled her shirt back down, a defeated expression on her face. "He did it so he would be the only one to want me again."

George wrapped her in his arms and pulled her into his lap. "Love, he was wrong. I still want you. I love you, Luna."

As the rest of the family looked on, Luna seemed to crumble under George's words, burying her face in his shoulder and sobbing.

Ginny got up and went to her, kneeling in front of her and George. "We'll get him, Luna. We'll make sure he can never hurt you again."

Just then the fire flared and Kingsley Shacklebolt stepped through.

"We've got him and have questioned him under Veritaserum, so of course he's admitted everything. He'll be going to Azkaban for a _very_ long time."

The only sound that could be heard after this was Luna's sobs.


	2. Chapter 2

Holey Moonlight – Chapter 2

Disclaimer: There is adult language and situations in this fic, but no graphic descriptions!

Ginny and Hermione came back down from helping Luna to bed to find George in his parents' arms, crying.

"She's asleep, I think," stated Hermione as she walked in the room. "Although she was still very upset. Before she settled down she asked if George could stay with her."

Mrs. Weasley nodded. "Of course, the poor thing," As she continued rubbing George's back, she looked at the Auror. "Kingsley, exactly what did Neville confess to?"

Kingsley sat back and thought for a moment, going through everything that Neville had said and what the Weasley's had told him Luna had said.

"Pretty much everything she told you, except," here he paused, looking at George warily. "He said he'd done all this to show her that _he_ was the only one she should love. He was petty convinced that she's been in love with George for a while, now."

Everyone jumped when a glass on one of the table exploded.

"Harry, mate, calm down," Ron looked at his best friend.

Harry shook his head. "Wasn't me, mate."

The room stared at Harry until another glass broke and George jumped up.

"It's me," he said shakily. "I've – I've got to get out of here for a few minutes." He walked out through the kitchen to the backyard, and everyone could hear several more things break as he passed through. They all looked at each other, perplexed. None of them had ever seen George lose control like that before.

"I'm going to go talk to him," everyone startled when Luna's voice drifted through the room. She was standing there in only a very long shirt and barefooted. She nodded once at everyone and walked out after George.

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

She stood there silently, watching him. It looked as though he was crying and alternating between punching a tree or using is Wild magic to tossing gnomes over the fence.

"AAAAAAAHHHHH!" He screamed and wit hit such a powerful surge of Wild magic that he ended up uprooting the bush he was grabbing gnomes from and tossing it over the fence along with about 8 gnomes that were hanging on for dear life.

"Georgie," she called softly, knowing he'd hear here even if she were to whisper.

Sure enough, he whirled around, eyes red from crying and wild from the emotions he was trying to deal with.

"Luna," when she took a step towards him, he held up his hand. "No, don't. I can't control myself. I don't want to hurt you, even accidentally," as if to prove his point, another bush was uprooted and flung over the fence.

She smiled softly, shaking her head and started walking toward him again. "You wouldn't – _couldn't_ – hurt me, Georgie. Even accidentally. I know it."

He turned way, bowing his head, the Wild magic palpable around him.

When she reached him, she stretched out her hand and laid it on his shoulder, trying to soothe him.

He turned around, head still bowed. "I wouldn't want to hurt you, Luna, but I can't – I'm so mad and hurt for you. All I want is to get my hand son him and –" One of the smaller fruit trees split in two with a loud crack and he shuddered.

She laid a hand on his cheek. "It means so much to me, Georgie, to know that you love me," he head snapped up and she smiled. "It means so much to me because I've been in love with you since my fourth year."

His eyes grew round and he started stuttering. "Y-you're in l-love with m-me? S-since your fourth y-year? B-but you and Neville…"

"I was with Neville only because I never thought I'd be able to have you," she shrugged and grinned impishly. "And everyone – including yourself – seems to expect it."

George stood there staring at her for a few minutes before pulling her flush against him and kissing her deeply.

Luna wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back just as passionately. When they broke for air she smiled down at her.

"Let's go to bed."

"I though you'd never ask."

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

The rest of the Weasleys and family were still sitting in the living room when George and Luna walked back in, hand in hand.

"We're going to bed, now. We'll see you all in the morning," and without waiting for a reply, they walked upstairs. A moment later, everyone else heard a bedroom door close quietly.

Mrs. Weasley smiled. "They'll be just fine."

The rest of the family nodded and smiled. Yes. George and Luna would be fine.

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

As he closed the door to their room, Luna enlarged the single bed to a nice double-sized and crawled in to wait for him.

When George turned around, he froze, breath suspended in his chest. Sitting there, in _his_ bed, was every fantasy he'd had since before the Final Battle. It was as if an angel had come down to fulfill his wish.

As he stared at her, Luna felt herself start to blush. She'd never imagined that George Weasley – _her_ Georgie – would be staring at her with _that_ look on his face. She stared back for a moment before scooting over and patting the bed beside her.

George felt his knees go weak and his mouth go dry. There sat Luna, with her hair cascading over one shoulder, inviting him to join her. He was frozen to the spot. He couldn't think. All he could do was stare.

She smiled at him, then. "Georgie – come to bed," she said quietly, patting the bed beside her again.

He walked over to the bed, still staring at Luna and stripped down to his boxers, then crawled in next to her.

She looked up at him with a pleading look in her eyes. "Please, Georgie, love me. I need you so badly – help me forget him and everything he's done to me."

He shushed her gently, taking her into his arms and gently laid her back before kissing her heatedly. "I love you, Luna – and tonight I'm going to show you exactly how that should feel," he whispered sweetly in her ear, before covering her lips and body with his own.

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

_She was back at the Final Battle – there were so many dead and injured laying around her._

_She was fighting some faceless Death Eater, trying to check on her friends at the same time. _:Spell, then shield,: _she'd think to herself as her eyes roamed between her attacker and the rest of the scene._

_There was Harry fighting Voldemort – Ron and Hermione were fighting more Death Eaters._

_And Ginny, being snuck up on by Bellatrix Lestrange. Before she could cry out a warning, Molly Weasley was there. _"Not my daughter, you bitch!"

_That's when she noticed him – Rookwood, sneaking over towards Percy, Fred and George, shouting out a spell, the wall crumbling away – _

_Only this time it wasn't Fred that died – it was George…_

She sat up screaming "No! George!" shrilly, face already wet with tears. It took her a moment to remember what she'd been dreaming, then she broke down.

George was awake and sitting up before she was done screaming. When she broke down, he gathered her into his arms, stroking her hair and gently shushing her.

Then a knock came at the door. "George? Is everything alright?" It was his mum.

"Come in," he called, not really wanting to shout through the door. Thank Merlin they'd both decided on putting on at least a shirt and underwear after…

He blushed a little at where that thought led, when not only his mum, but the entire houseful of people filed in, still dressed, and giving him curious looks at his blushing. _Huh. Must not have been asleep for that long._

Seeing an obviously distraught Luna in her son's arms, Molly bustled over to her side of the bed, sat down and opened her arms.

Luna took one look at the kindly woman that she'd been terming "Mum Weasley" for years, gave a small cry, and launched herself into her arms.

George and the rest of them watched, troubled, as Luna completely broke down in the elder witches arms, sobbing loudly.

"Here, now," Molly cooed. "What's this all about?"

After another moment, Luna sat up out of her arms, sniffling and wiping her eyes. "I-it was just a nightmare."

Molly rubbed her arm, knowing there was more to it than that. "Why not tell me about it? They say talking about them keeps them away."

Luna blushed a bit, looking at 'Mum' Weasley and started describing her dream. She was aware of everyone else listening, but it was more comfortable to talk just to Molly.

"I-it was the Final Battle – it was like I was back there, reliving it. I saw Harry fighting Voldemort, Ron, Hermione and I were fighting Death Eaters. Then I saw Bellatrix sneaking up on Ginny and you coming to defend her. That's… that's when I saw it," her voice very quiet and trembling now.

She took a deep breath, twisting the sheet in her hands. "I s-saw Rookwood – casting the spell at Percy, Fred and George and the wall falling," here her breath caught as she struggled not to sob. She continued in a voice barely above a whisper. "But it wasn't F-fred that got caught under the w-wall. I-it… i-it was George," the last was said very fast, and she buried her face in her hands, breathing heavily and leaned into Molly, trying not to cry.

Molly held the beautiful young woman that she'd come to think of as another daughter as she looked around the room, sure her face was registering what everyone else's face was showing – shock and sadness.

After a few moments of shocked silence, George cleared his throat. "B-but I'm still here, Luna. I-it wasn't me, I'm still right h-here for you," he stuttered, trying not to cry, so worried for his Luna.

She sat up again and looked at George – the tears in his eyes, his worried look and fell into him again, wrapping her arms around him so tightly he was sure that she cracked a rib or two.

He didn't mind, though, as he again wrapped her in his arms. "H-hey, now – what's all this? I'm here, we're together and I'm not going anywhere, I promise," he took a deep breath, trying to control the tremor in his voice. "F-fred is the one gone, Loony – not me. I was left here by myself so we could be t-together," he could feel the tears sliding down his face, but couldn't seem to care. "Just as you were l-left here alone to be with m-me. A-and I'm so thankful, love, that T-they gave me you. I wouldn't have s-survived without you," he buried his face in her hair, then, sobbing out his grief and happiness.

The rest of the family watched and listened to George comforting Luna. Hermione and Ginny were silently sobbing, clinging to Ron and Harry, who also had tears rolling down their cheeks.

Molly got up fro the bed, tears standing in her eyes, to go to her husband, who'd eyes were also wet with unshed tears. Together they quietly shooed out the rest of the family, closing the door softly on the weeping couple.

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

After a few more minutes of crying, Luna pulled away from George slightly, a small, slightly forced smile on her face and she chuckled quietly. "You called me Loony – you haven't done that since the year after the Battle."

George wiped the tears from her cheeks and under her eyes and chuckled as well. "Yeah, well, I told you all that time ago that you were _my_ Loony and I was the only one that could call you that from them on. Remember?"

She smiled up at him, remembering that year and how difficult it had been to get George to open up to her. "I remember," she said, thinking back…

***FLASHBACK***

_She'd been trying for _weeks_ to get him to talk to her. They'd been so close, the three of them, before the last battle. Now he was closing himself off from everyone – his parents, siblings, friends – even her._

_And she'd had enough._

_She had flooed into the shop, seeing that, once again, it was closed up in the middle of the day. She stormed up to the flat above the shop, walking in without knocking or waiting to be asking in. What she saw there pulled her up short – and made her even madder._

_George – sweet, wonderful, always smiling George – was sprawled on the couch, obviously passed out drunk, with a bottle of Ogden's Firewhiskey still half-full, tucked under his arm._

_She conjured a pitcher of ice water, snagged the bottle of Firewhiskey away from him and dumped the pitcher over his head._

_George came up spluttering, dipping wet, with bleary eyes and a frown. "What the hell - ?"_

"_That's what I wanted to ask you," she spoke with an icy, clipped tone. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" She brandished the Firewhiskey at him. "Drawing your sorrows is not going to help, Georgie!"_

_He made a grab for the bottle, but she was too quick and he was still a little too drunk. He glared at her._

"_What the hell, Loony?" he half-slurred at her. " Give me my fucking bottle back!"_

_She shook her head, returning the glare. "No! Not until you talk to me, Georgie!" she caught his wince, but kept going. "Tell me! Tell me why you're doing this to yourself!"_

_He stared back at her stubbornly silent._

_She glared at him for a moment longer, before sighing and placing the bottle down on the coffee table and turning to go._

_Something about Luna looking defeated and sad made George's stomach drop. He was talking before he realized it._

"_He was my twin! We did everything together! He swore he'd always be there for me! That we'd always be together! We even talked about a double wedding when we finally decided to settle down," he put his head in his hands, very near tears again, which he'd been avoiding with the help of the Firewhiskey and mumbled. "No one understands. Merlin, how could they?"_

"_You feel as if someone has stolen all your air and left you with something thick and choking. As if someone has cut off your wand arm and left you with something unusable and alien," here her breath caught in her throat, but she forced it around the lump that was quickly forming. "You feel as if the one person – the _only _person – that will ever understand you completely has been torn away from you, leaving you with no one that will ever get you the way they did."_

_When she was done, she slowly pivoted on the spot to find George staring at her, mouth open in shock. He swallowed hard and asked. "How - ?"_

_She knew she was crying now, but couldn't seem to get herself to care enough to stop. She'd finally broken through to George._

"_I am – _was _– a twin," she spoke softly, willing the tears on her face to not show in her voice. "remember, I told you about my mother?" At his nod, she continued. "Well, my sister, Joy, died with her in that accident. Not many people knew that we were twins, we didn't go out much, so when they died father buried them on our land and no one seemed to notice she was gone, so we just never really talked about her," she looked away, allowing the tears to fall freely as she remembered the horrible times she and her father had, trying to cope with not only the loss of their wife and mother, but also the loss of her twin._

_And, suddenly, she had her arms full of a sobbing George Weasley. He clung to her, crying hard with her, letting her comfort him. Finally their legs could no longer hold them, and they ended up on the floor, crying and screaming their grief into each others shoulders. She couldn't remember which of them it had been to pick them up and move them to the couch, crying themselves to sleep, secure in each others arms._

_George did better after that – he and Luna were together every day, at least for several hours. She got him to quit drinking and to start visiting his family again. She even got him inventing again and he reopened the shop with hers and Lee Jordan's help._

_The day he reopened is the day he'd first called her _his_ Loony._

"_You made all this possible for me, Loony," he'd smiled at her when she blushed and mumbled something about not calling her that._

_He'd laughed then, already knowing he was in love with her. "Well, you're _my_ Loony," he'd said with mock bravado, wrapping her in a hug, chuckling. "And if anyone else calls you that, you just tell that, and that if they have a problem with It, they can come talk to me."_

_That was the day that Luna Lovegood realized exactly how long she'd been in love with George Weasley._

LGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLG

As her eyes refocused on the ginger-haired man sitting in bed next to her, she could tell that he was reliving the same memories.

Then, as she watched, a horrified realization flashed across his face.

"Loony."

She shook her head. "It wasn't your fault. I'm the one that told him what you had said, thinking he'd find it as funny as I did. Apparently, he didn't."

George opened his mouth to apologize for what Neville had done to her back based on his comment, tears again in his eyes, but she stopped him.

"No. This was not your fault, and it wasn't my fault," she told him firmly. "It's _his_ fault for reacting that way," she rubbed a hand over tired, puffy eyes. "I'm tired again, Georgie – let's go back to sleep."

George nodded, laying down and holding his arms open to Luna, who immediately snuggled into them, pillowing her head on his chest.

It might not be perfect, but they were together and loved each other. That would help them get through the coming weeks.


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry, guys! Sorry! This is just a quick A/N.

I'm so sorry that I seem to have abandoned this fic. The good news, is, I have not. :)

I've had a lot going on the past 2 years, not the least of which is moving 3 times. Then I lost my copy of the story and the notes for it.

Well, good thing I had to move this last time CAUSE I FOUND IT!

I'm going to start working on this story, and I'm going to try and have a new chapter up to replace this within a week. I can't promise, but I'm going to do my damnedest!

Just keep your chins up and don't let the Muggles get you down!

(was) Luna Wyllow  
>(now) LoonyLovelyLuna (I'm on Twitter and FB with this name, so drop by and say hi!)<p> 


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